Home / News / Red Wings deal Jakub Vrana to St. Louis Blues, retain 50% salary

Red Wings deal Jakub Vrana to St. Louis Blues, retain 50% salary

By Ian Oland

 5 Comments

March 3, 2023 9:43 am

Jakub Vrana is on the move again.

Hours before the NHL’s trade deadline, the Detroit Red Wings traded The Snek to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for a seventh-round pick in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft and center prospect Dylan McLaughlin, who has only played six games in the AHL this season. Detroit is retaining 50 percent of Vrana’s remaining contract.

The Blues will be Vrana’s third NHL team over the last two years.

Vrana’s future in Detroit was seemingly over after his struggles earlier this season. The 2018 Stanley Cup champion played in only two games to start the season before checking into the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program. When Vrana returned, the team opted the forward to the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins and then placed him on waivers. After no teams claimed V, the Czech scorer eventually went on a tear, tallying six goals in a seven-game span.

The former Capitals forward is an elite goal-scorer and has one of the better shots in the league. He was a big part of the team’s championship run.

Vrana’s problem, at this point, is his durability and just getting on the ice. Vrana missed most of the 2021-22 season due to a shoulder injury he suffered on the first day of Red Wings training camp.

If Vrana remains on the Blues’ NHL roster, he will get the opportunity to once again play his former teammates in DC when the Caps and Blues face off on March 17th.

Vrana is a reclamation project, sure, but with the right support and attitude, he could be a game-changer on a young and rebuilding St. Louis team. He has one additional season remaining on a three-year deal that pays him $5.25 million annually.

Here’s the full press release from the St. Louis Blues:

Blues acquire Vrana from Red Wings
Red Wings receive 7th round-pick in 2025 and prospect Dylan McLaughlin

ST. LOUIS – St. Louis Blues President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Doug Armstrong announced today the team has acquired forward Jakub Vrana from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for forward Dylan McLaughlin and a seventh-round draft pick in 2025.

Vrana, 27, has spent the past three seasons with the Red Wings, totaling 32 points (22 goals, 10 assists) and 18 penalty minutes in 42 regular-season games. The 6-foot, 195-pound forward was originally drafted by the Washington Capitals in the first round, 13th overall, of the 2014 NHL Draft.

Vrana made 284 regular-season appearances over five seasons with the Capitals, posting 157 points (76 goals, 81 assists) and 67 penalty minutes. The Prague, Czech Republic, native also dressed in 38 postseason games with Washington, including 2018 when he logged eight points (three goals, five assists) to help the team capture the Stanley Cup.

Overall, in 326 career regular-season games, Vrana has totaled 189 points (98 goals, 91 assists) and 85 penalty minutes.

McLaughlin, 27, was signed by the Blues as a free agent on July 14, 2022. This season, the Lancaster, New York, native has scored one goal in six appearances with the Blues’ AHL affiliate, the Springfield Thunderbirds.

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